Computer Science Intern Resume

You may have no trouble writing code, but can you write a resume that lands you a job as a coder? With countless students and fresh grads fighting for the same internships, you’ll need to set yourself apart with a thoughtful resume that shows employers you’re uniquely qualified.

Use these three tips to write a computer science internship resume that jumpstarts your IT career:

1. Highlight your technical skill-set

With the technical nature of this job, employers will prioritize your technical skills. List important computer science intern skills in the resume skills section so the hiring manager can easily assess your skill level.

Also, include any relevant certifications that show employers you have the right skill-set for the job.

Because this is a highly competitive entry-level role, it’s critical to feature job-specific abilities in your resume bullet points to show employers you’re a perfect match. If you have few real job experiences to showcase in the work experience section, use relevant coursework to highlight your essential computer skills.

Here are key computer science skills employers look for:

• Microsoft Access 
• Programming languages (Python, Java, and CSS, C++, and HTML)
• Software engineering
• Data structures
• SQL Server
• JUnit Testing
• Linux
• Dreamweaver
• Eclipse
• Data mining
• Debugging
• Prototyping
• Testing

Unsure how to incorporate relevant coursework into your resume? Here are a few examples of how to craft bullet points for a resume targeting a computer science internship:

Designed an effective application interface in visual environment, implementing variables, data structures, database management, ActiveX components, and web connections.

Learned and implemented the fundamental concepts of machine learning, including data visualization, data preparation, model implementation, and model evaluation.

Developed a modular and resilient game engine using test driven development ensuring high quality performant games.

2. Make your computer science internship resume 1 page (no more, no less)

Landing a computer science internship is the first step towards acquiring the knowledge and skills required to kickstart a career in IT. Because the job posting is likely to attract attention from countless students and fresh grads, you can expect the hiring process to be rather selective.

As part of an exceptionally large candidate pool, you’ll only have seconds to catch the hiring manager’s attention. To make your application more attractive to employers, communicate your qualifications succinctly in a one-page resume.

Achieving the ideal resume length of one page will make it easier for employers to assess your qualifications, and gives you a general guideline of how much information is necessary.

Need some help? Here are a few tips to achieve the perfect computer science internship resume length:

• Research the company to gain a sense of what an employer would value most in an intern, and analyze the job posting to uncover job-specific skills. Adjust your resume bullet points to position yourself as the ideal candidate for the specific internship you want.
• Only include information that’s pertinent to the internship, and cut out any experience where the skills aren’t transferable. For example, your bartending experience wouldn’t benefit your application much when applying for a computer science role.
• When outlining experience and relevant coursework, focus on your accomplishments and use strong action verbs to make your contributions more clear to the reader. For example,

Developed a modular and resilient game engine using test driven development ensuring high quality performant games.

• Write a professional cover letter to submit along with your resume to further explain why you’re the right person for the internship.

3. Emphasize complementary soft skills

Though your technical abilities are essential to the role, your hard skills aren’t exactly everything. To convince employers you’ll make an excellent addition to their team, showcase a good mix of hard and soft skills in your resume bullet points.

When hiring for a computer science intern, employers seek people who are not only easy to work with, but also capable of solving complex problems in a systematic way and delivering projects on time. Such talents are related to your soft skills.

Emphasizing your soft skills will make you a more compelling candidate because soft skills simply make you a better employee. And while your hard skills are what make you qualified, soft skills are often the tiebreaker between two equally qualified candidates.

Here’s a list of soft skills employers look for in computer science interns:

• Creativity
• Attention to detail
• Problem-solving skills
• Analytical skills
• Critical thinking
• Multitasking
• Initiative
• Adaptability
• Self-discipline
• Work ethic
• Communication skills
• Time management skills
• Organizational skills
• Receptive to feedback
• Teamwork

Here are great examples of how to showcase some of these skills in your resume bullet points:

Designed an interactive application using React and Ruby on Rails that allows users to login and write game reviews. Created a sleek look, with Information displayed clearly.

Worked with a 4-person team to create a React website that showcases recipes. Used ReactJS to display information and an API call to render relevant information.

Created a mobile game using JavaScript, writing well-engineered, reliable, scalable and maintainable codes.

Complete your application with a computer science cover letter. Additionally, take a look at job applications in similar fields, such as a cover letter for software engineers, for more professional ways to frame your own experiences.